A Week of Walls

This past week I've spent painting, not miniatures, or even regular-sized canvas, but lots and lots of walls....well, eight in total, ok......sixteen if you want to count the closet walls and ceilings.

(the travelers ready to depart)

My husband and our older son left for a trip to Guatemala this past week (more on that next post.....with lots of pictures hopefully!). So, while half of our family was off being international travelers, I jumped at the chance to freshen up some bedrooms that were in need of some help!

(Before....very early in the morning)

Bedroom #1- belongs to my older son who was away on the trip. So the day they left (very early in the morning) I took photos of each wall so he could put back everything exactly as it was when he left. He has a difficult time with changes, so nothing "new" was done. He wanted the same paint color (in fact, it is the same paint color he has had since he was five years old!). The only "surprise" I had for him when he returned was that I painted the inside of his closet.

(After.....late at night, same blue color just cleaner and fresher.)

Bedroom #2- belongs to my younger son. He was home with me so he had lots of input into the transformation of his room. He has always loved the color red, so when we moved into the house four and half years ago, I told him I'd paint just one wall red...and the "red" of my choosing! :)
Well, after living with it for four years, he decided he wanted a much brighter red. So, this past summer we "tested" another red on a small wall area in his room. I wasn't crazy about the color, and of course, he wanted it all over the room....every wall! After three months of seeing red, (literally on two walls) I came up with a compromise and a solution he liked.....one red stripe painted horizontally around the room. I "think" I can live with that, and he really like the idea.

(Sorry I didn't take a photo of the two red walls "before", guess I was in such a hurry to get rid of them before he changed his mind!)


So far, I've primed the red walls, painted the base coat a soft off-white called Swiss Coffee. I love that color, I've used it on all the trim in every house we've owned. Then I measured the horizontal border all the way around the room and taped it off with blue painter's tape. Then painted the border a tan, this will help the "red" and black stripes not be so "striking"! (And yes, I typed "black", lol.)
I had to put all of his belonging back into his room to get the house in order before the travelers returned on Saturday, but this week the plan is to finish the red and black stripes.....one larger red stripe in the middle of the tan with a smaller black stripe above and below the red, but still on the tan border.

Funny little story: As a "good faith measure" I took my son to the paint store to purchase his red and black paint. A lady was also having some paint mixed and when mine came out of the mixer and they showed me the "red", she asked, "What are you going to paint with that red?" I know she was thinking I'd say, "Oh, my front door." But I explained the design idea to her, and while my son turned his head, she mouthed the words: "You are a brave Mom." Lol!......if she only knew!